We are all quite sensitive to wheat. When our second born got a bad candida overgrowth we ditched it and felt so much healthier without. If we eat it now we get headaches, aches legs, moodiness and tummy upsets that last for days. There is a great documentary called What’s With Wheat that explains perfectly why we experience these symptoms.
When we first cut it I experimented with gluten free alternatives. None of them felt right though. Cutting wheat to eat concentrated amounts of potato starch, tapioca and white rice just didn’t sound healthy to me and plus, none of it tasted good. So I began exploring ancient grains. Kamut and spelt are both grains that contain gluten but a very different form than wheat. These two grains have not been modified and are still in their pure form. And guess what! Neither of them affect us like wheat does. I personally like the taste of spelt better than kamut but both are lovely. Any recipe that calls for wheat I simply swap equal parts for either of these flours.
Here is my go to bread recipe. So yummy, so simple, so resilient. We use the same dough to make pizza, buns and baked bagels.
- 21 oz whole spelt flour
- 2 tsp active yeast
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 TBS sugar
- 2 TBS oil
- 14 oz warm water
I use a scale as it makes it so much More precise and easier than measuring cups. Mix, cover, let rise in a warm place until at least doubled in size (3-7 hrs, depending on air temperature - the warmer it is the faster it will rise), oil bread pan and bake at 450’ for 22-25 minutes.
*My trick to making sure it doesn’t stick to the pan is to oil it and then sift a little flour on top of the oil before putting the dough in.
For Pizza, make the dough the same way but spread on baking sheet or in a skillet, spread toppings and bake at 450 for 22-25 minutes.
For Buns or baked bagels break off bits of the dough, form into balls or circles and place on baking sheet. We love to sprinkle them with dried garlic. Bake at 450 for 15-17 minutes.
